I would never be one to celebrate Modell's death, even though I despised him for what he did to all Browns fans. And believe me there are also a heck of alot Browns fans who never lived in Cleveland, but came from other places in Ohio, or even outside of Ohio. You wont find a more loyal fanbase. Art's death will be mourned by his family, friends, and I'm sure by many players and citizens of Baltimore. But holding any type of tribute in honor of Modell at the game in Cleveland would be very disrepectful of Browns fans everywhere.

Fans of other teams can try to minimize what happened to Cleveland all they want, but those who do either aren't that devoted to their teams, or their teams aren't woven into the fabric of the community the way the Browns were. And to top off what the NFL did to Cleveland, they then put the expansion Browns team into the same division as the old Browns team which was pretty good when it moved. So the fans then had to watch the new Browns get beat consistently by the old Browns. Thanks NFL. You should have moved Baltimore to a different division.

Regarding Modell, it wasn't just the move that's a black mark on his ownership legacy. Truth is he never could afford to own the team. He even had a minority owner that felt Art was cheating him back in the 70's and maybe into the early 80's. He also refused to share certain revenue with the Indians that they felt he should have. And when given the chance to have a stadium built that the Indians and Browns would share he nixed it because he would have had to share revenue (from Indians games) with the Indians. I believe the revenue in question was parking and concessions from Indians games.

Art was on the verge of bankruptcy because he wasn't a good businessman and could never afford to own that team. Rather than selling it, or at least controlling interest to a new ownership group that would keep it in Cleveland, he didn't want to because he wanted to pass ownership to his son after he died. Baltimore offered him a sweetheart deal to steal the team away from a loyal fanbase, and Art jumped at the chance, and the other NFL owners obviously didn't have enough ethical or moral character to try to stop it.

Alot of people now are talking about Art as the funny man, but he didn't think before he talked. Tony Grossi, the former Cleveland Plain Dealer sportswriter, said that Art was once talking to the media and the reporters all started laughing because Art had mentioned how the Browns were going to beat the Raiders. After the interview Ernie Accorsi asked Grossi what Art said this time, and after Grossi told him, Accorsi slapped himself on the forehead, shook his head and walked away. Art got bad enough they tried to manage him from speaking too much to the media.

Grossi gave a good interview on 'The Really Big Show', which is on podcast on ESPNCleveland.com. If you click on podcast, then Really Big Show, you'll see it. Tony writes articles on that site now as well and has some on Art.

Alot of people genuinely liked Art, but some of the things he did were wrong, and some were downright arrogant. And speaking of arrogant, Brian Billick mourned Art's death by attacking Browns fans on NFL Network's AM show. Classy move Brian. I hope you have to broadcast Browns games this year, and fans let you know how much they appreciate your unkind, and untrue words. Art was not forced to sell the team you arrogant, condescending loudmouth.

Schefter is reporting at the request of the Modell family, the Browns will not pay tribute to Art Modell before Sunday's game.

Now your fan base won't be trapped by the media. Now is your opportunity to drop it forever.

good to see the modell family has common sense; obviously it isn't that he never did anything for cleveland or the NFL or whatever else and doesn't deserve recognition for any accomplishments just because the city didn't have a football team for a few years... it is to avoid the inevitable result of trying to get people to not yell stupid **** in the heat of the moment when they are drunk at the first football game of the season. this isn't about art, it is about respect for his friends and family. maybe if it were a baseball or basketball game the circumstances would be different.

Art Modell wasn't a terrible owner. He was actually a pretty good one.

The Browns have a rich and proud history that sadly not many know about or acknowledge.

Art Modell was a big part of that. Look what the Browns have been since Modell moved out. They're a joke.

The beef btw Modell and the city of Cleveland is justified, and I'm not gonna get in btw it, but let's respect what the man accomplished and what he meant for the league and it's history.

I think it depends on who you talk to. Modell for all of the innovative things he did for the league also did some things there were enough to irk any football fan if he was your team's owner. He fired Paul Brown soon after he took control of the organization. I think it was two years later. Some folks believe Brown may have been difficult to work with especially when Modell was in control though. So who knows. But the Browns were consistent winners for about 15 years under Brown's command. Once Brown was out the gate, they still won a title, but it was due to the team Brown had previously built.

Modell also wasn't the best owner in terms of handing his money very well. Interesting tidbit per another forum:

Quote:

The Browns weren't hemorrhaging money, Modell was, due to his business incompetence. The Browns averaged around (if not more than) 70,000 per game for much of his 35-year tenure, and, at least in the last two decades, Modell was getting PLENTY of TV money to pay bills.

In July 1973, he and the city of Cleveland came to an agreement whereby he took over the running of Cleveland Stadium and he (and a partner) would make $10 million worth of improvements. He got the income from concessions and, for the first 15 years, all the parking income. Over the course of the next six years, he borrowed money to pay for those improvements, with the variable interest rate going as high as 19 percent.

Since his job was to maintain the Stadium, it's pertinent to note that at the time of his move (and for years before), the place was considered a dump by both visiting teams and fans, so it's questionable how much money he put into upkeep.

He, like Randy Lerner, had to keep paying coaches he had fired. He gave Forrest Gregg a contract extension, then fired him later that year, with one year left on the deal. His next coach, Sam Rutigliano, got a four-year extension in 1984 (thru '88), then was fired THAT year. Another coach, Bud Carson, was fired halfway through his second year, with one year to go. In each of the latter two cases, Modell tried to weasel out of the deals, by claiming both Rutigliano and Carson were attacking the organization. While Carson's comments led to nothing, Rutigliano took him to court when Modell stopped payments in 1986 due to comments made in the wake of safety Don Rogers' drug-related death, with Rutigliano winning.